Attorney-General Judith Collins has appointed Auckland barrister and solicitor Brett Donald Tantrum as a Judge of the High Court, effective 30 March 2026. He will sit in Auckland.

Justice Tantrum graduated with an LLB (Hons) from the University of Auckland in 2000 and began his career in commercial litigation at Bell Gully. He joined Meredith Connell, the office of the Auckland Crown Solicitor, in 2002, became a partner in 2011 and has been a Principal Crown Prosecutor since 2017.

His practice has focused on serious criminal matters and appeals. He has prosecuted homicide, organised crime including commercial drug offending and money laundering, and serious sexual violence cases, and has appeared in criminal appeals in the Court of Appeal. He has also acted in public and administrative law, including judicial review and regulatory proceedings, and serves on the Serious Fraud Office prosecutors’ panel.

Justice Tantrum spent time with the New South Wales Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions in 2006, was admitted to the NSW bar, and prosecuted sexual violation, fraud, serious violence and drug-related cases there. He was seconded to Crown Law in 2009–2010, appearing for the Crown in a range of criminal appeals.

The High Court hears the country’s most serious criminal cases and complex civil matters. Justice Tantrum’s appointment adds further appellate and major prosecutions experience to the bench.